Saffron Paella with Shrimp, Mussels and Andouille

I created this easy yet elegant paella recipe for a piece on aphrodisiac foods that ran on the Gaiam website last February. This is simple enough to make for a weeknight meal, but also fancy enough to make for a dinner party. Serve it with a nice crusty bread, a simple green salad, and a glass of crisp white wine. Enjoy!

Heat chicken stock in the microwave and dissolve saffron in the stock. Heat olive oil in a large skillet or paella pan over medium high heat; add onion and cook until barely soft then add red pepper and sausage and cook until pepper is slightly soft and sausage is lightly browned. Add garlic and cook for one minute, then add rice and saffron stock, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Stir, then salt and pepper to taste. Lay shrimp and mussels on top of partially cooked rice, replace cover, and cook until rice has absorbed all the liquid, the shrimp are cooked, and the mussels have opened, about 10 more minutes. Discard any unopened mussels and sprinkle entire dish with parsley. Serve immediately.